A few years ago, I had a Facebook account and through it, I was able to meet some wonderful brothers and sisters in the Lord. However, I was also able to see a microcosm of the churchworld in realizing how many professing Christians really have no foundation in, or commitment to, the faith.
I am sure there are those who sill say, "Facebook has afforded me the opportunity for fellowship and ministry." Perhaps. Yet one needs only look at the preeminence Facebook has been given in a number of Christians' lives to wonder whether it has become an idol for many. They joke about how much time they spend on it, how addicted they are to it, and how it even takes away from other responsibilities they have within their own families.
When I left Facebook, a Christian sister asked me, "What are you going to do now? I cannot even remember life before Facebook!" A number of people were sure I would be back, themselves being unable to even consider breaking away from it.
What is it that pulls us to such sites? Why is it that they become such an important aspect of our lives, where we cannot go out to dinner or even spill a drink without posting a "status update"? Who are we really glorifying in our interactions on Facebook?
These are the type of questions Bro. David encourages us to consider in his video posted below, and I have to agree with him.
Is it really a burning desire to lift up Christ which leads to the amount of time spent on such sites? Or does its appeal lie in the fact that it can serve as a form of self-validation & self-exaltation? It gives everyone their 3 minutes of fame. Each person now has their own "pulpit" from which they can espouse their take on things. It invites others to constantly "like" and endorse who 'I' am. I can take and post innumerable pictures of myself and garner incessant rounds of praise about how "good" I look. The very set-up of Facebook encourages us to become self-absorbed, if we are not careful.
If Jesus is not the center of our presence on Facebook, then it is all vanity. What do I mean by "center"? It is not about listing an affiliation of "Christian" under the Info about me page. Neither is it occasionally posting Scripture or talking about how "good" God is. When Jesus is the center of our lives, then everything we do comes from the place of evaluating what is pleasing to Him in our lives. As Min. Al Martin stated, "The cross RADICALLY disrupts the very center and citadel of your life from self to Christ."
Is our presence on Facebook about us or about Christ? Do our posts glorify our looks, our goals, our accomplishments, our thoughts, and even our challenges, or do they magnify Christ? I often wonder, how some would interact with their Facebook "friends" if these people were actually in local fellowship with them. Would they endorse their sin with a "like"? Would they laugh at and consider amusing the perversions espoused in the name of telling a joke? Would they ignore the corrupt fruit for the sake of continuing the fellowship? Our interactions on Facebook (and every other area of life) is not separate from our walk with Jesus Christ. Rather, they simply bear fruit to whether we are who we proclaim to be.
I encourage people to listen to Bro. David's reflections on this with an open heart, and if there is conviction, then repent and ask God to change your heart. Don't believe the lie that your time on Facebook has nothing to do with your faith, but understand that it is an unveiling of what is truly in your heart (as is all we do and say).
As stated above, I do believe this issue is much bigger than Facebook; such is a sample of what we find in Christianity in general. Now is not the time to keep playing church, but to seek God to be circumcised in the inner man so that we may actually become what we profess to be: a follower of Christ.
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